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Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Critters, How Do You Want To Do This??

I have a slightly unusual way of finding new fandoms, guys: I follow the cosplay.

John and I go to so many cons that its easy to track the newest and most popular shows, because anyone who cosplays will tell you: that's a labor of love you reserve for the very best. So if I see a sudden tidal wave of characters from something I don't know, then heck yeah, I'm gonna check it out.

Plus then I get to call it "research."

[Me, in my 6th hour of watching anime: "I'M WORKING, JOHN."]

Cosplay is how I first discovered (and fell in love with) Steven Universe, Gravity Falls, My Hero Academia, and getting to the point of this post, Critical Role. [insert Mercer's eyebrow lift here]

I first started watching Campaign 2 of Critical Role last August, I think?, and I've JUST NOW caught up. This is a fandom that demands massive amounts of your time, but pays off in so much heart, laughter, and even occasional tears.

Hang on, I should probably back up and tell you what it is.

Critical Role is a web show/podcast where "a bunch of nerdy-ass voice actors sit around and play Dungeons & Dragons." It's led and DM'd by Matt Mercer, who my fellow Overwatch players know as the voice of McCree.

The 4-hour (sometimes longer!) show is live streamed on Twitch and YouTube every Thursday night, and Campaign 2 is currently up to Episode 48. That's over 192 hours of content - and their last campaign had 115 episodes. Yeah. Wowza.

Now, if that description sounds less than compelling, believe me, I understand. I actually started listening to the show as a way to help me fall asleep at night, ha. After a few weeks something terrible happened, though: it got so interesting I couldn't fall asleep. Then I realized I needed to WATCH these people, not just listen to them, because they often make jokes and react to things the others are doing, rather than saying. And since they're all pro voice actors who drop in and out of their character voices, there were times I couldn't tell who the heck was talking.

Once I was actually watching the show, I realized I had to watch all the announcements, too, because they were so funny. Then I had to start reading the comments (breaking the first rule of the internet, I know) for all the fan theories and in-jokes. Then I had to watch all the fan art at the end, because it was gorgeous and often illustrated parts of the previous show.

So yeah, a few months in, and I was a fully fledged Critter. (We even get a cool fan name!)

Now I'm converting the cats.

Again, this is a fandom that asks a lot, and the pay-off (at least for me) can be a slow burn. Even now I find the show drags sometimes, but then it will sneak up and sucker punch me with an amazing twist, or a sweet back story, or a heist-gone-wrong. Plus you can't spend this much time with 7* people without feeling like you know them, and sitting in their virtual circle (...triangle?) feels like hanging out with friends. (*Technically there are 8 in the cast, but Ashley isn't there much.)

For most of Campaign 2 the show had this hilariously groovy 70s themed intro. There's a new animated intro now, but it has major story spoilers, so stay away if you're not caught up!

There are two married couples in the cast: Matt & Marisha (Marisha is on the right in that pic) and Laura & Travis (middle). A lot of fans like to joke that Sam & Liam are married, too, because their bro-mance is real and adorable and often the most hysterical part of the show:

Liam's and Sam's characters are actually a couple in the show, but not in a romantic way. Sam plays a tiny goblin girl, and Liam is a... well... hobo wizard. I won't spoil anything, but their dynamic remains the best, purest, most heart-warming story arc in CR, and I can't wait to see where it goes.

I won't go into the other characters because there's just too much, and I'd probably accidentally spoil something. There's a little of everything, though: from the mysterious, angst-driven type to the immature joker to the warrior to the snarky hedonist. They also have guest stars sometimes - other voice actors - who honestly keep getting better and better. Oh! And as the DM, Matt plays every other character the team talks to, which has yielded pure GOLD on a number of occasions. (His flirty Dwarven barkeep was a personal favorite.) The best has to be Pumat Sol, a firbolg shopkeeper with three clones, a magical supply shop, and a voice like a tipsy Canadian angel. I'm telling you, PURE. GOLD.

Right, I think I've raved and rambled long enough. SO.... any fellow Critters out there? Have you cosplayed any of your favorite characters? Crafted anything? Started playing D&D? Spill! Tell me in the comments, or share your pics on FB or IG so I can see!

And if you're not a Critter (yet?), I hope you'll give the show a chance! I recommend starting with Campaign 2 like I did; it's a fresh start with everyone playing all new characters, so it doesn't matter if you've seen Campaign 1. You can watch the first episode right here on YouTube. Just a cautionary note for parents and/or anyone listening at work: there are F bombs GALORE, which took me a while to get used to. There are also plenty of crude jokes and characters drawing wangs on everything, so proceed and parent accordingly. :D

*****

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Yessss! I got into Critical Role around that same time! I'm caught up on campaign 2, and I'm getting close to finishing campaign 1 (was watching episode 91 when I saw your post). I'm now planning who I want to cosplay. I'm thinking Nott for right now, because she's the best! But I've also got a soft spot for Mollymauk the disaster tiefling as well.

Yaaaasss! Long term Critter here. Managed to meet them and see a live show at GenCon year before last. I also play D&D now because of them (my group plays almost every week for over 2 years now). They area amazing and the Critters are a generally lovely bunch. You should check out some of their other shows too, the entertainment and production quality is great. The Between the Sheets episodes with the cast (some spoilers for Campaign 1 possible) were so emotionally endearing.

Omg yes! I started watching while recovering from surgery in September. I stopped for a bit, but I'm full force into Campaign 2 now, on episode 14. I still have, like, 8 months worth to catch up on (eek!) but I love looking forward to watching it. Jester is my fave (girl carries donuts everywhere and deals killing blows with a giant lollipop! C'mon!) and I think my next cat will be named Frumpkin. It's got me considering trying to find a D&D group to play with, if only I didn't have crippling social anxiety. :( For now, I watch and enjoy the Mighty Nein play. :)

Do you think it might be easier for you to play in an online game instead of an in-person one? It's not quite the same experience, but might be a stepping stone to an in-person game. Plus you can be picky about the type of game you're playing and the attitude of the DM at least. Players can be a little more variable, but I've seen a lot of games being posted by Critter DMs particularly for new players.

Welcome!!!! The shows are also podcasts now. I listen to them when i am painting or playing WoW. I love this group of nerds so much. Also highly recommend the one shots they have done. Liam has done 3 or 4, Marisha has done 3 (Honey Heists, they are the best), they are on youtube

I also got into Critical Role thanks to cosplay! Ginny Di, a brilliant cosplayer, made a wonderful, beautiful Jester and raved about the show for months before I decided to check it out. I'm only on episode 10 (that's already 40 hours of listening time, so I think it's safe to say I'm pretty deep in!) and can't wait to catch up!

This makes me SOOOO HAPPY! I'm a huge Critter and was hoping you would get into it. Aren't they just... just... amazing???? AND, because of this show, I... a 52 yo woman... now play with a group every week and my husband has joined. The Critter community is an amazing group of people.

I'm like 12 episodes into the second campaign and really enjoying it as knitting motivation for a ridiculous thigh high sock knitting project haha! Jester is on my cosplay list, for sure, but yeesh do I not love doing body paint. Worth it for that giant lollipop though...

I got sucked into campaign 2 shortly after it started and once I was caught up I obsessively watched all of campaign 1. It's a bit rough at the start but once it gets going, hoo boy, does it get going.

I think my favorite part of the show is the way that the entire cast clearly just adores everyone else and they're having SO MUCH FUN together. That's part of the reason I just can't listen to the podcast, I have to watch it to get all the interactions and the facial expressions (and in campaign 1, people literally falling off their seats from excitement).

This is SO AWESOME!!! I've been a Critter from practically the beginning (July 2015) and watching fandom go from a small circle of fans on the floor of the lobby at NYCC 2015 to being able to fill an over 2,500 seat theatre in Indianapolis for the live show has been an AMAZING ride and I love seeing new fans join in online!! So many wonderful creators and artists and just cool people become Critters :) It's a high barrier for entry, and I know I'm not the best at catching up sometimes, but it's so so worth it. I definitely recommend season one, even though the beginning is kind of rocky- the journey is beautiful and heartbreaking and thrilling and glorious. I haven't done any major cosplays but I did make a "Liam O'Lion/ DM O'Brian"outfit that I wore to Gen Con 2017 and Liam retweeted a picture of me!!! I've met the cast a couple times now and they are as genuine and sweet and kind in person as they are on screen. I started playing because of the show and eventually DMing off and on and the first time I saw them they said "good luck" and the last time (after I started DMing) Matt said "Welcome to the club" and was so sincere and lovely and I can't gush enough. So let me also say (though it's not as thrilling as from Matt) - Welcome to the Critter Club!!

Awww, everything about this makes me happy. I love that you - and other Critters! - are so welcoming ti newbies, you don't find that a lot of other places in the geek community. I also love that everyone reports the cast is as genuine as they seem on screen, they truly deserve every bit of their success. <3

My 29 year old son puts everything on hold Thursday nights for it! He is a Critter for sure! I can't wait to tell him you are too! He loves to cosplay and I'm always telling him to check out your pics!

I'd been seeing CR posts go across my social media for years, but was a bit overwhelmed when I started looking into it, because there's. Just. So. Much. I finally decided to give it a try at the beginning of last year, when I heard they were starting the new campaign. I've also since started catching up with Campaign 1.

CR is what got me started in DnD, and how I've met my best friends. I am having trouble keeping up with campaign 2, it doesn't speak to me as much as the first one did, but I'm still absolutely a critter and keep up to date on how they're doing as a whole. Seen some great cosplays at cons, but honestly, even the reactions I get from wearing my How do you want to do this? shirt in day to day life make the world seem like such a smaller and friendlier place. I know there's a lot to get through, but honestly I'd try campaign one as well if people are keen for content.

Again, this is a fandom that asks a lot, and the pay-off (at least for me) can be a slow burn. Even now I find the show drags sometimes, but then it will sneak up and sucker punch me with an amazing twist, or a sweet back story, or a heist-gone-wrong. Plus you can't spend this much time with 7* people without feeling like you know them, and sitting in their virtual circle (...triangle?) feels like hanging out with friends. Yess exactly :) When there's an hour and a half of shopping sometimes I catch myself wondering why the heck I chose something to follow that's so slow and meandering, and then I always remember.

My husband and I discovered CR last spring via Campaign 1, which we've now finished and are working hard to catch up to campaign 2 (on episode 35!). I was unconvinced at first but was gradually pulled in to become a full fledged critter! We're also working our way through the one-shots, which can be equally awesome. DEFINITELY go through campaign 1 if you get a chance, the character dynamics are incredible and there are some "NPCs" (Matt characters) that you will love.

Yay! Welcome to the critter family! Along with so many others, I gave it a shot at the start of campaign 2 and became completely sucked in. I then discovered a group of coworkers who love the show as well and now we've somehow ended up in a campaign of our own :D

Hey Miss Jen! I would happily use your link for my Amazon purchases.....gotta keep those cuties in cat food! Do I have to find the link on your page first each time, or is there an easier way to do it?

Ahh, Critical Role. How I love campaign 2. Kiri has to be my favorite NPC, but that's because I love kenku so much. I feel like it's an easier campaign to get into than the first one, maybe because you're seeing the group form all together.

If you like Critical Role I'd say give Tales of Nowhere a shot. It's a newer podcast with table top role play games being explored as one cohesive story is being told. And it has plenty of interesting story twists and character development throughout it, along with some pretty solid voice acting.

OH hells yeesssss!!! I am always psyched to see someone join us in the amazingness that is Critter-dom! I started watching live about a third of the way through campaign 1, and haven't missed a stream since, although I have to go to bed at the break now because of time zones and work schedules :( If you get the chance and can convince your brain that it'll be okay, I HIGHLY recommend going to a live show. The energy is wildly unbelievable, with hundreds of people who are there enjoying the hell out of the same thing you are. I'm not a cosplayer, but did run a D&D game for beginning players because of Critical Role. And we're still playing with one of those people and her significant other and are really close friends now!

But really, the best part of Critical Role is the attitude that the cast has and the way it's passed on to the fandom. I've heard so many stories of Critters being incredibly generous to other Critters and to charities. Honestly, both the CR cast and Critters are making the internet and the world a better place.

I'm not into CR (yet?) but I've had it rec'd a bunch because I listen to The Adventure Zone, which is a podcast of three brothers playing DnD with their dad. They play very fast and loose with the rules though, so if you're not into a role-playing version of calvinball, maybe pass on it. I will say though, Griffin (the youngest brother and DM) made something really special with the story. It starts off very silly, but suddenly you realize you're 40 episodes in and crying about an NPC or laughing out loud about something they're doing. It's honestly great. Griffin also made a lot of music for the campaign arcs, and I will put on the soundcloud playlist and listen to it all for hours.

I've been reading Epbot since you started it (I was a Cake Wrecks reader before that) but I've never commented on the blog before. I love hearing about what you and John are up to - the latest projects or cosplay or life updates - but I was so excited to hear you were a Critter too I just had to comment! Me and my Jon started watching Campaign 2 when we couldn't decide on a Netflix series to watch in the evenings and there were no new episodes of Tabletop. We very quickly became obsessed having marathon viewing sessions every night of the week. We still haven't quite caught up (episode 43) but it's exciting to be getting close! We are looking forward to watching all the One shots too when we've caught up and then possibly delving into campaign 1. I got Jon a Mighty Nein T-shirt from the crit-role shop for Christmas and it's his favourite thing. Watching Critical Role finally made me want to try playing D&D myself (Jon has been wanting to for a while.) We have now started a campaign with 2 close friends who are also D&D newbies. Given they live down in London and we live in Glasgow we have now had a game over Skype and it worked so well we already have our next date in the diary! So nice being part of the Critter family!-Cat

Like you, I met Critter cosplayers at cons and had no clue who they were. Then you mentioned Critical Role on a previous post, and I knew it was time to try it out. Now I'm HOOKED on it, furiously trying to catch up. I have a mild addiction to buying new dice as my husband and I like to roll along with the players. Thank you for the introduction to this fandom! I'm hoping to get a Jester cosplay together because I love her!!!

My husband and I both read this post independently and decided unilaterally that we really needed to watch this group! We just finished the first episode of season 2, and we're hooked! The players are wildly talented, and it is so fun to watch!

I started with the 2nd campaign about a year ago and then about 8 months ago watched the 1st campaign(nearly done). I've made plushes of Nott and Pumat Sol and am working on a Jungle Caleb cosplay complete with octopus and cat Frumpkins. It's a great show to sew to.

Welcome to the club! I was getting ready to play D&D for the first time last January when my husband suggesting watching "an episode or 2" of Critical Role campaign 2 since it was just getting started and may give me an idea of what D&D is all about. Fast forward a year and Critical Role is now an important part of our week! Definitely starting watching/listening to Campaign 1 but go slowly. My husband whipped through it all as fast as he could and now he's jealous that I still have "new" episodes to listen to since he misses Vox Machina (Campaign 1).

I love Critical Role! I am still working my way through Campaign One, and it has surprised me how deeply I fell into it. I started watching it because I need background noise while I'm doing other stuff (like cooking, baking, cleaning, etc) and then before I knew it I was sitting and watching four hour stretches with my heart in my mouth over one or the other of them! (I keep thinking I have a favourite character/player, and then something will happen and I'll remember that they are all wonderful, talented people, and I fall in love over and over again).

Meeeee but I'm a new critter. We're 20 eps into Vox Machina, because I stupidly thought I should start with the first campaign haha. I'm sure I will catch up with all epsidoes by, oh I dunno, 2025??? lol.